Vita gazette: Is the snow falling red now? Or do the Alps bleed? Could the algae, known as “snow blood” that accelerate the melting of the Alps, send a message about climate change?

Eric Marechal, research director of the Grenoble National Scientific Research Center, with his teammates possessing laboratory samples from Mount Le Brevent, a snow-capped mountain about 2.5 kilometres above sea level, holds a crimson test tube containing “snow blood”. Around his feet are patches of red snow that glisten in the sunlight.

The so-called “blood of the snow” is thought to be caused by algae. Aristotle first described algae in the 3rd century BC. However, the year in which it is officially defined is 2019. And it was given the Latin name Sanguine nivaloides. The presence of algae accelerates the melting of the snow. Scientists say the increase in algae could be due to climate change. The team notes that red snow is more common when carbon dioxide levels rise. If the algae spread, the melting of snow and glaciers around the world.